Sunday, February 10, 2013

Mountains of madness: THE ABOMINABLE SNOWMAN(1957)

The
"yeti", also known as the "abominable snowman", a large and hairy
humanoid creature alleged to exist in the Himalayas, has been the
subject of countless horror movies and documentaries over the years. I
can honestly say that I haven't come across a yeti documentary thus far
that I didn't like. Sadly I can't say that for horror movies featuring
this mysterious beast: most of the ones I've seen are total stinkers
include one I recently watched on SyFy called "Abominable Snowman".
Apparently the company that produced this film(a word I use loosely
here) decided that poor acting, a largely uninteresting human cast of
characters and CGI renderings of the malevolent creatures that resembled
something out of a video game is a formula for success for SyFy.
They're right about that, if nothing else but their completed work is
still something I regret watching and also a movie which is in my
estimation absolutely atrocious, even by SyFy standards.

To
date there are only a handful of films featuring "yeti" or yeti like
creatures that I find watchable, even entertaining: 2006's Abominable, a 1977 made for television movie called Snowbeast, the 1955 Toho produced Half Human(Ive only seen the Americanized version) and last but definitely not least, 1957's The Abominable Snowman, an early Hammer films movie that has stood the test of time and remains IMO the best movie presentation of the yeti.

The
yeti phenomenom came to the forefront of media headlines in national
newspapers in the 1950's in concert with the publicity surrounding the
first successful ascent of Mt. Everest, the tallest mountain on Earth(at
over 29,000 feet in height) by Sir Edmund Hillary and his expedition in
1953. Members of the expedition, including Hillary himself, have been
quoted as saying they heard strange noises that sounded semi-human.

Hammer Studios decided to make a film about the mysterious creature, based on the 1955 BBC teleplay The Creature. The result: The Abominable Snowman, directed by Val Guest and released theatrically two years later in 1957.

The film's story:
world renowned botanist Dr. John Rolason(played by Peter Cushing),
despite an ominous warning from the local Buddhist temple priest,
reluctantly decides to join an expedition to search for the yeti, aka
"the abominable snowman". The expedition, led by Tom Friend(played by
Forrest Tucker of F-Troop fame), begins it's ascent into the steep,
rugged higher elevations of the Himalayas. After establishing a small
base camp the group is indeed visited by the mysterious creatures. One
is shot and killed by expedition member and trapper Ed Shelley(played by
Robert Brown). The dead creature is ignominiously used as bait, to lure
other members of it's kind to the expedition members. This action
proves disastrous, the team discovering that the yeti have a mysterious
"telepathic" ability, it's effects on the surviving team members
unpredictable and dangerous. (no spoilers).

Observations:
this film is easily one of my top five favorite Hammer horror films.
It's a grim and moody feature with some marvelous visuals of the rugged
and awesome mountains of Nepal and a somber, at other times urgent score
that nicely compliments the action in the film itself.

Like
every Hammer horror film the story is actor driven and Hammer horror
film veteran Peter Cushing doesn't disappoint as botanist "John Rolason"
whose curiosity about the existence of the yeti is a proverbial itch he
finds himself compelled to scratch despite his wife's concern for his
safety and Rolason's own disdain at adventurer "Tom Friend"(played by
Forrest Tucker). Tucker's character "Friend" contrasts to botanist
Rolason in that the adventurer wants to capture a yeti to make a profit
with no interest in studying the creature at all. The clash of wills
between the characters "Rolason" and "Friend" is an interesting dynamic
in this clasic black and white horror film, the two characters
maintaining an uneasy tolerance of each other during their hike into the
mountains and nearly coming to blows during a lively debate about the
merits of their expedition.

Perhaps the most intriguing part of
this movie, for me anyway, is the ending. I won't reveal what happens
but for me the films' conclusion is thought provoking and not what I
expected at all.

The movie itself is available on Region 1 DVD
as either a stand alone film, or as part of a double-feature, paired
with the 1970's martial arts crime drama Shatter!

Always working

About me

Single, 53 years old, dedicated movie buff, longtime Atlanta(GA) resident and career landscaper/nurseryman
,dedicated fan of the Atlanta Falcons, Philadelphia Eagles and Tennessee Titans.
I am also a great fan of Godzilla, Ultraman, Japanese fantasy/sci fi films as well as classic horror/sci-fi cinema